Thunderbirds are going, going, gone

In the world of collecting, toys are one of the keenest obsessions. And television-related toys are particularly sought after as they "have a better chance of steadily increasing in value", said Jamie Breese in Collect it! (October). Especially popular are those connected with Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds. Interest in memorabilia from the cult 60s series has "literally skyrocketed", Breese claimed, since the summer release of a film version starring human actors rather than string puppets.

Collecting for Tracy Island fans falls into three categories. At the bottom is an array of merchandise - such as games, figures, books, records and posters - that is sold at internet auctions and car-boot sales. Next up are the earlier toys. Dinky's FAB 1 (Lady Penelope's pink Rolls Royce) which was produced between 1967 and 1975 can fetch up to £450 in boxed and mint condition.

The most desirable collectables, however, are from the series itself, especially the original stars. "The puppets are so rare that they are headline-grabbers when they do appear on the international market," said Breese. "For example, an original Lady Penelope puppet sold for £22,000 at ... auction in 1995." This was topped in May last year by an "incredibly rare" head of John Tracy, which went for £37,600.

Toys from the 1960s were also on Chloe Gambell's mind in Doll (October). Although Fashion Queen Barbie (FQB) is not the most collectable doll, it is the ultimate Barbie, she reckoned.

Introduced in 1963, it was Mattel's response to the popularity of "hair-themed dolls" of the day. "Packaged in a large, open-fronted display box - a style normally reserved for gift sets - she was dressed in an eye-catching metallic gold-and-white-striped swimsuit with a matching Cleopatra-style turban and three stylish wigs." Despite costing twice as much as the basic Barbie, the doll was a success throughout the 1960s. It was a shame that the most exciting of the Mattel range had become less desirable simply because it was "the cheapest and the easiest of the vintage dolls for collectors to find", said Gambell. "No doll is so adaptable, capable of going from casual to high fashion with the change of a wig. Three dolls in one and a perfect, affordable model, FQB is still the ultimate Barbie," she concluded.

One of America's most famous collections of antique dolls' houses went for $1.4m (£800,000) at auction in June, reported Miniature Collector (October). Flora Gill Jacobs' collection went under the hammer after her Washington Dolls' House and Toy Museum closed in May. "In acknowledgement of her stature in the miniatures world, many in attendance at the auction sought out Mrs Jacobs during the preview week for autographs and conversion."

The mood of sentimentality led to many of the lots selling at well above their estimates, said the magazine. The post office window that had served as a ticket window at the museum went for $2,640 (£1,470) - more than six times its pre-auction estimate.

In Antiques & Collectables (October), Mike Ennis noted that Matchbox products are filling the vacuum left by the popularity of Dinky toys, which are now beyond most collectors' wallets. "Matchbox toys, a delight for half a century ... was started by two unrelated school friends, Leslie Smith and Rodney Smith, after they left the Royal Navy following their national service in 1947."

Ennis predicted that Matchbox prices could go the same way as Dinky's if American collectors continue their "love affair" with the toys. At a recent auction in Pennsylvania, "a small Matchbox toy model of a red Pontiac sports car, issued in 1970, sold for £3,900; the original cost was two shillings and sixpence."